And as always, happy adventuring! Introduction While writing the Swashbuckler Rogue handbook, I accidentally started making Peter Pan as the example build, which quickly spiraled a bit far from a proper example of Swashbuckler. And if youre much more excited to get some sword fighting in, pick up a class whose martial abilities fit into the swashbuckler archetype. Rogues have a crazy amount of skills to choose from, and starting out with four proficiencies (not including any racial or background) is unbeatable. You can use a bonus action on your turn to gain advantage on the next Acrobatics or Athletics check you make during the same turn. Spies, thieves, assassins, these are the archetypes that I picture whenever someone mentions a rogue, be it D&D or not. 6. 8. Re: 5e Optimal Swashbuckler (SCAG)/Fighter multiclass build. Both attacks missing is 40%*40%= 16%. The goal is damage vs damage/utility. Now, as an adult, I aspire to remind people that sometimes a little bit of fantasy is all you need when life gets to be too much. Multiclassing can be an incredible option for customization in 5e D&D. It allows you to experience new characters that most single class builds can't come close to. Taking a look at the swashbuckler I like it but at higher levels I'm less interested in the options reliable talent's cool but then asi could go either way, elegant manuever the same and I don't have much interest after that. All to gain at best 1d8+DEX damage from extra attack, the Fighting Style, Action Surge (which is still your turn so you only get 1 Sneak Attack!) Swashbuckler/Warlock looked cool to me as well. D&D Beyond can help create your characters by making choices using a step-by-step approach. Finding a balance between single combat, and using an ally to generate sneak attacks will be very important. But then that's only 4 levels of rogue. Therefore, I'll have an opportunity to be a smug outcast or an honorable prince. Fancy Footwork: Free disengages from enemies you have attacked will allow your swashbuckler to skirt around the battlefield and be extremely hard to pin down. When you have to make a Dexterity saving throw in order to take half damage from an effect you now take no damage on a successful save and half damage on a failed save. Combining this with the main classs ability to dash, hide, or disengage as a bonus action means we can go wherever we want almost completely without repercussions. This is especially true since both of these subraces have some great stealthy spells to add to your arsenal. Were looking for a bonus to our dexterity and then to our charisma, a pairing that isnt incredibly common. Splitting the difference between our 9th and 13th level features, we can pick up Defensive Duelist for a boost to our AC while were using our finesse weapons. Be more of a Swashbuckler in heart than a tinkerer. INT: Let the Wizard be the smart one, youre the stabby one. For a rogue, this might put us in danger. This kind of character will continue to boast, brag, quip etcetera, just like any of the dashing characters we see in film and other media. Talk about value for a subclass feature. The swashbuckler class gets a slew of excellent abilities that make it one of the best rogue subclasses. We also have all of the additional toys that character (B) but are limited to+5.33 from Action Surge due to fewer attacks per Attack Action. Ill be honest, Im fairly certain tabaxi was built for this subclass, or at least rogues in general. If you were going for a Way of Shadows ninja I could see some benefits to a Rogue/Monk multiclass but not for a Swashbuckler. I have further clarified it to only consider the result of the first successful attack, the alternative is to roll all attacks and apply sneak attack to the better result. Going Dex/Wisdom/Charisma, just need a campaign to play her in :). Covering The Best In Video Games, Esports, Movies and Geek Culture Answer (1 of 2): The best multiclass options are, of course, those that build upon your character in a way that makes sense within the story where the character exists. Theyll likely have to waste their turn full dashing to get in range, which will allow opportunity attacks and kiting possibilities. Just hit Lvl 4, very tempted to get Magic Initiate as suggested. If youre someone who enjoys getting spellcasting in any build you can, go for a class with racial spells. Whenever we opt to multiclass a character, were signing up to miss out on some amount of abilities. This is the class to take if we want to pull off fancy stunts. If we increase these characters to Rogue 9 (A), Rogue 4/Fighter 5 (B) and Rogue 5/Fighter 4 (C) respectively, character (A) gains +1d6 sneak attack and the Panache ability, their total attack routine now generates a DPR of24.18. If you are wielding a light weapon in each hand you can use a bonus action as an offhand attack (using your non-dominant hand to make an attack, you cant add your ability score modifier to the damage though). So I started to touch on this earlier on, in the limitations section. Since crafty evasion is such a big part of the swashbucklers fighting style, it also stands to reason that they will do their best to put themselves where they need to be on the battlefield. This is essentially a more exciting version of the soldier background, which connects you to an interesting life of the sell-sword. Is that something specific? Rogue players who like a little magic in their game will love the Arcane . Standalone, this ability is awesome. I realize getting to these levels are campaign dependent but humour me. Regarding Alignment. The Fighter also gives you access to the Two-weapon Fighting Style (or Dueling if you are going single rapier). Eldritch Adept Whether or not you chose to grab Eldritch Blast with Magic Initiate, there are a lot of very useful invocations you can add to your arsenal of abilities. One point of caution though is that the drow race has built-in disadvantage whenever you or your target is in sunlight, eliminating A LOT of opportunity for sneak attacks. The Swashbuckler Rogue is loaded with good features from levels 5 . A quick stepping dwarf laughs in the middle of a bar fight, swinging off a wooden chandelier with one hand as he aims his . Typically I move in, strike, and use Cunning Action to dash away. This would give a DPR excluding sneak attack of 8.25. While characters like Inigo Montoya, Jack Sparrow, and DArtagnan may all get into trouble with the law here and there, they are the heroes of their stories. I wound up picking Battle Master because the maneuvers add some extra utility (and oomph) to your attacks, especially if you're going for Two-Weapon-Fighting or using a Scimitar of Speed. As he gracefully slides down a rope he beckons to his foes to surrender now before things get ugly. Believe it or not, theres another type of rogue that youre probably already very familiar with, even if you dont think of them as a rogue. A big part of being a swashbuckler is having a reputation that speaks for itself, even if youve done some of the fabricating for it. But if you are creative, there are plenty of exciting options. Ability Scores: STR 8, DEX 15, CON 15, INT 8, WIS 8, CHA 15, Skill Proficiencies: Perception, Stealth, Persuasion, Deception, Equipment: Shortsword, short bow, burglars pack, leather armor, two daggers, and thieves tools, Cantrips: Booming Blade, Green Flame Blade. Ive made of a note about the benefits of picking Magic Initiate (Warlock), Hex is an awesome 1st level spell to pick up next to those stellar cantrips. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Or another option to add Magic initiate to get booming blade or GFB. We cover the best background for Rogues in our 5e Rogue Guide, the only changes would be: Ability Score Increases (ASI) at 4th, 8th, 10th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level. Weve adjusted the Magic Initiate to include some good Warlock choices and added in the Half-Elf to the races section . Well, no. Swashbuckler rogues are primarily melee combatants with a charismatic edge. As with most rogue subclasses, Swashbucklers tend to be a single target combatant. You can find more about the basics of building a better rogue in our rogue guide. Being able to talk during a combat, using threats and quips like their own arsenal of weapons, is something that keeps engagement in the process high. Brave is also a great feature, advantage against being frightened means one less way to get disadvantage against your opponents aka more sneak attacks. Much like the Rogue/Sorcerer, the Rogue Swashbuckler/Warlock often casts Booming Blade, disengages, and then gets away without taking any damage by using Fancy Footwork. Variant Human +1 two abilities of your choice (DEX and CHA). Use the buttons below to fine tune the content you see in our guides. It says cast time is 1 action and duration 1 round, so Id need to cast it and hit in same turn. Let me start off by saying, Spiderman is a great example of a swashbuckler, although I should probably focus on an easier sell, like Inigo Montoya. Zoltan Boros - Wizards of the Coast - Dire Fleet Daredevil. Fighter has a slightly higher minimum damage. Rogues are masters of stealth and subterfuge, only plunging in the knife at opportune moments before . We get a lot of skills thanks to the rogue class. 3. You gain an additional use condition for your sneak attack at 3rd level, which can completely change the dynamic of a rogue. Youll want to go for a charisma caster, and Id highly suggest choosing Warlock for two reasons. Pretty sure I'll stick with Hexblade for the rest of the ride, as long as it lasts. If I use Booming Blade cantrip, that is a bonus action right? Community. Rogues get the second most amount of ASIs/feats of any class, with 6 levels to choose ASIs for. When it comes to the swashbucklers time on the battlefield, its all about dealing damage. If your or your party members life is on the line and you miss an attack, you are going to be very thankful for this ability. wats your build? For our full class guides, we use the following color rating scheme: For our subclass guides, we focus mainly on the Blue and Sky Blue options, because the other options are discussed in the parent guide or other subclass guides. When I mention a rogue, what comes to mind? Also, as we discussed in the limitations section, there is a lot of potential to improve upon this subclass and make it your own with feats. Their main subclass feature is the tweak to Sneak Attack, which allows Swashbucklers to apply their extra damage when dueling an enemy 1v1 rather than the original circumstances (advantage, an ally within 5ft, etc). This character would have Action Surge for an additional 2 attacks once per short rest (+10.65) and would have 4 superiority dice (d8) to use per short rest (+11.7) which could be spent on trip attack to grant advantage (+DPR) or use Riposte for an off turn attack (+12.80including sneak attack and the superioty die). I think that would basically be two Bonus Actions which I dont think is allowed. Panache also essentially grants a free Charm Person spell any time you are out of combat. No more waiting in the shadows for one of your party members to engage an enemy before you rush in. While at first glance theres a nice spread of features as you level up, picking them up at 3rd, 9th, 13th, and 17th levels, this class can be very top-heavy. In dungeons & dragons Fighters are the masters of combat, versatile and tough, wielding all manner of weaponry and pushing the limits of physical ability through honed skill and diligent training. You focus your training on the art of the blade, relying on speed, elegance, and charm in equal parts. . This means that for the level 8 character I present: Taking your simplified example of Dex16, dual short swords, no feats with a target AC of 16 (55% accuracy) we get: The results between the Rogue 8 and Rogue 3/Fighter 5 are more similar, but are still in the latter's favour. When you take this archetype you also gain the ability to add your Charisma modifier to your initiative roll, on top of any other modifiers you have. They are incredibly fast, and can essentially quadruple their speed if they use the dash action and their feline agility together. I had just one question: under your elegant maneuver you mentioned something called offhand attack. Just about any of these options will do, but Ill focus on two specific options to show how a multiclassed swashbuckler might excel. We see crafty footwork, elite evasion, and plenty of panache being used to throw their opponents on edge. My mistake. Youre almost guaranteed to get extra damage in each turn. I'm thinking I want to bring em' up to level 9, but what sort of multiclasses would be good on a swashbuckler? Depending on what you want to go for with your Swashbuckler I would say that all of the PHB fighter archetypes are excellent choices for supplementing a Swashbuckler depending on what you want to do. Thanks for the discussion. This means at level 12 with 3 ASIs you have 20 Dex and 18 Cha. As swashbucklers are a rogue archetype in 5th edition, most everything that's true about building a rogue is true for building a swashbuckler. Basic DPR is 10.65, sneak attack DPR is 9.56 for a total DPR of 20.21. Brawling goes very well with Rouge swashbuckling and sailor. 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